opinion on hammer fired or striker fired handguns for carry

This is a discussion on opinion on hammer fired or striker fired handguns for carry within the Defensive Carry Guns forums, part of the Defensive Carry Discussions category; In your opinion which one and why would be more reliable for carry striker fired or Hammer fired?...

View Poll Results: which more reliable hammer or striker fired for carry?

Reliability wise I don't think there is that much of a difference. If you look at Ruger with the SR series guns and their P series guns, they both work fine. Same with Springfield Armory with their XD series and 1911's. The advantage of a hammer fired gun, is if it does not fire the first time, you can always thumb the hammer back and try it again. It all becomes a matter of personal preference. Myself, I like hammer fired guns, but I do have a striker fired gun that I carry on work days. Has nothing to do with reliability, but with size and ease of carry.

In your opinion which one and why would be more reliable for carry striker fired or Hammer fired?

Reliability isn't determined by the action type.

Some pistols have a better reputation than others, for reliability. It has nothing to do with the action type, but rather the quality of engineering and manufacturing/assembly. And none are malfunction-proof.

"A heavily armed citizenry is not about overthrowing the government; it is about preventing the government from overthrowing liberty. A people stripped of their right of self defense is defenseless against their own government." -source

Some pistols have a better reputation than others, for reliability. It has nothing to do with the action type, but rather the quality of engineering and manufacturing/assembly. And none are malfunction-proof.

I agree completely.

My guess is that all modern 'quality' handguns are going to be very reliable. Some may take more care/maintenance (1911), and others less (glock), but treat it right and it should perform well for you.

I personally prefer DA/SA or DAO because I like putting my thumb over the hammer when holstering. It also weirds me out knowing the striker is fully cocked over a live round in a striker fired SA like an XD or M&P (half cocked strikers like glocks and rugers are fine). I guess I've spent too many years doing failure analysis...

Reliability wise I don't think there is that much of a difference. If you look at Ruger with the SR series guns and their P series guns, they both work fine. Same with Springfield Armory with their XD series and 1911's. The advantage of a hammer fired gun, is if it does not fire the first time, you can always thumb the hammer back and try it again. It all becomes a matter of personal preference. Myself, I like hammer fired guns, but I do have a striker fired gun that I carry on work days. Has nothing to do with reliability, but with size and ease of carry.

I agree with you, but i myself have moved more towards my hammer fired guns because i can just pull back the hammer and not lose money on ammo.

I prefer a hammer, but reliability has nothing to do with it. Striker-fired autopistols tend to have slides that protrude comparatively farther to the rear, which complicates concealment. Hammer-fired pistols, especially with spurless hammers, can be more concealable, an example being my duty SIG P229 DAK. My prior duty pistol was a Glock, and served as an obvious point of reference for comparison.

At re-holstering time, all else being equal, I would rather be able to put my thumb in a position to feel the hammer, to increase the certainty that firing cannot occur if something has possibly entered the trigger guard. This is not a deal-breaker for me, but
a comfort factor, nonetheless.

Lastly, I started handgunning with a 1911. A hammer just seems like it belongs. This is purely emotion-based preference. I have owned fully reliable pistols with hammers, and without.

Most of the modern hammer fired pistols are DA/SA (Sig, FNP). I found that the transition from the first, long DA pull to the second, very short SA pull is difficult to master in realistic training scenarios. The only hammer fired pistol I own is a 1911, which is SAO.

I don't thnk that relaibility is an issue with good quality, modern handguns.